The invention concerns a hose connector.
Hoses that are able to float in the water are being used in transfer of pumpable fluids offshore, such as refueling of platforms from supply boats or transfer of mud from a platform to a supply boat. In this purpose it is known to attach floating devices to ordinary hoses or to attach tubular mantles of foam material to the hoses. Both of these hose constructions provide buoyancy but do not increase the safety. Moreover, this is not a suitable way to provide a wear resistant hose.
In connection with increased focus upon the pollution problems from a spill, a need for safety measures beyond hose upsizing has arisen.
Hoses have been proposed wherein the object of the outer hose has been to accommodate leakage from the internal main hose. Safety hoses of this type have enabled production of hoses that are able to float in water. But the main objective of establishing safety has prevented development of a satisfactory floating hose. For example U.S. Pat. No. 6,085,796 (Riga, 2000) describes a composite safety hose having an internal and external hose, which has been provided for hydraulic systems, having a low transport capacity. The design of the end connectors has not been satisfactory.
There is also known a double pipe having a foam material in the outer annulus in order to establish thermal insulation among other things. A structure of this type is known from U.S. Pat. No. 6,349,976 (Mentor Subsea, 2002), but neither has this one been suitable as a floating hose.